A MEMBER of the “Young Guns” of the House of Representatives on Tuesday chided Vice President Sara Duterte for reacting adversely to the Quad Comm probe after her husband and brother were implicated by a witness in the seizure of illegal drugs in 2018.
Zambales Rep. Jefferson “Jay” Khonghun told VP Duterte that her brother, Davao City Rep. Pulong Duterte, and her husband, lawyer Mans Carpio, should just clear their names and deny any involvement in the accusations leveled by Jimmy Guban, a former Customs intelligence officer, in the Quad Comm hearing.
“Mas maganda, harapin na lang ng kanyang kapatid na kasama namin sa Kongreso. Madali naman humarap sa Quad Comm si Cong. Pulong, part siya ng Kongreso. Madali siyang pumunta sa hearing at i-defend ‘yung kanyang sarili,” said Khonghun.
“Pati rin naman si Atty. Mans, ‘yung asawa ni VP Sara, pu-pwede rin humarap para linisin iyong kanilang mga pangalan. Hindi naman ibig sabihin na porket asawa o kapatid ni VP Sara iyong mga nai-implicate dito sa investigation eh tatahimik na lang ang Kongreso. Mali naman yata iyon,” Khonghun said.
VP Duterte said the Quad Comm is politically motivated and accused lawmakers of engaging in political harassment against her family.
“Itong investigation na ito, walang tinitignan, walang sini-sino. Basta kung sino iyong lumabas na na-implicate dito ay talagang titingnan, bubusisiin at iimbestigahan ng Kongreso. At sana maintindihan din ni VP Sara, kung walang itinatago, hindi naman siguro sila dapat matakot na humarap sa Kongreso,” Khonghun said.
House Deputy Leader and Tingog Rep. Jude Acidre, meanwhile, said that illegal drugs remain to be a big problem in the Philippines today, contrary to the claims of VP Duterte that the social menace is no longer a problem for the country.
Acidre said that during the first two years of the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., a total of P44 billion worth of drugs were seized and taken off the streets.
“Kung pag-iisipan natin na ang drugs, iyong drugs na nangyayari sa barangay, apparently we have a bigger phenomenon pala. Nakikita natin na hindi lang pala iyong drugs na umiikot sa mga barangay ang meron tayo,” Acidre said during the press briefing at the House of Representatives.
“It appears to be na meron malaking organisasyon and mostly composed of foreigners pa na is exploiting iyong kahinaan natin dito sa ating bansa and exploiting, in the end, pati iyong mga kababayan natin lalung-lalo na iyong mahihirap,” he added.
“Kaya ang tanong ko doon sa comment ni VP Sara, hindi ba dapat issue iyon na talakayin ng Kongreso? Kung iyan ang nangyayari, hindi ba dapat trabaho ng Kongreso na alamin … kung anong mga polisiya ang kailangan nating pagtibayin?” Acidre said.
The bloody war on drugs waged by the Duterte administration that killed thousands of Filipinos did not seem to make a dent in the country’s drug problem. The Quad Comm probe is also zeroing on the EJKs that occurred during fatal anti-drug campaign of former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
“The present administration, you have to take note, has already recovered more than P44 billion in drugs, walang extrajudicial killing na na-report,” said Acidre.
“Importanteng alamin natin ‘yan lalo na kasi nga po may mga alegasyon ng nakaraang administrasyon, may mga pangyayaring katulad nito. It is within our full responsibility to review this kasi hindi natin pwedeng hayaan ito lalung-lalo ng panahon ng EJK na ang namamatay lang naman yung mahihirap,” Acidre said.
